Rita De Leo
Laxmi (Rita DeLeo) was introduced to Yoga by a friend in 1990 at a very stressful and pivotal point in her life. Seated meditation had always been a challenge for her and finding that Asana practice was actually a moving meditation was very appealing. This created a very profound change in her outlook. In 1992 Laxmi began practicing and studying Yoga Philosophy and also became very interested in the Healing Arts.
She became a Holistic Health Practitioner in 1994, and was certified to teach Yoga in 2000. She has been registered with the Yoga Alliance for 2 years. Laxmi has studied with many amazing teachers from around the Country such as, Swami Sitaramanada from Sivananda Ashram, David Life and Sharon Gannon from Jivamukti Yoga, Ana Forrest, Duncan Wong, Shiva Rea, Seane Corne, and attended a teacher training with Tim Miller in 2003.
In 2004, Laxmi travelled to India to absorb herself more fully into Yoga practice. It was there that she deepened her Meditation practice at the OSHO Commune, in Pune. She came into another level of self realization through these practices. Travelling out of this Country and to the Source was an uplifting and liberating experience for Laxmi. These Meditations helped her to be more peaceful and to break down the conditioning that perpetuates the suffering of Westerners. Laxmi is happy to share those teachings with all others.
Laxmi derives great joy from her own Vinyasa practice and hopes to convey that to her students. She is a compassionate and lighthearted teacher, whose classes are fun, dynamic, and challenging. She focuses on breath and alignment to maintain a safe environment, where she and her students can reach higher levels of self awareness. Her roots in Hatha yoga help her to create a balanced sequence of postures, easily modified to fit all levels of practitioners. Her classes are designed to relieve tension, create strength and flexibility, and encourage an overall state of bliss.